“She has always been that way,” Ophelia quickly added, continuing to stare lovingly at Amy. It was almost unreal how much more she was beginning to love her every day.
“Ophelia, I must introduce you to everyone,” Rosalina said as a lull in the conversation followed, pointing to those present one after the other, “And all of you must get acquainted with the most delightful person you will ever come across, Miss Ophelia Jennings, who is Amy’s nanny.”
Rosalina’s parents, the Baron and Baroness of Silvester, were extremely kind and welcoming, as were her younger sisters, Raina and Rowena. Her older brother, Lord Marcel, was just as warm as his sisters, and Ophelia did not feel uncomfortable in his presence at all. The extended cousins varied through ages, the youngest being Owen, who was just twelve, and the oldest being Edward, who was the quietest among them all. Ophelia could not believe how he even survived in such a friendly and loud family, considering his own silent nature.
Or perhaps he had not always been this way?
Ophelia was unsure.
“Amy looks exactly like Margaret,” Rosalina’s mother commented when she finally had the chance to hold the child, making Rosalina wonder what Margaret must have looked like. Although the entire family shared similar features, so it was hardly much of a surprise.
Ophelia sat at one end of the large drawing room, her gaze constantly drawing towards Edward while he remained indifferent to the entire scene. Everyone else was occupied with Amy, but Edward kept his gaze averted as if he was not even a part of the room or was a stranger to everyone in attendance.
His attitude pained her.
“Miss Jennings, is it alright if I leave her on the floor?” Raina asked, trying to hold Amy in her arms while she kept trying to jump out of them.
“Yes, absolutely.” Ophelia smiled, knowing how much Amy loved crawling these days. “Now that she is growing, she wishes to be left alone all the time and always wants to crawl about. It is perfectly alright.”
Raina nodded, carefully leaving Amy on the floor, who immediately had a huge smile on her face at the freedom. She began to laugh loudly, making everyone around her stare at her in complete awe. Ophelia glanced at Edward, who was also staring at her, his expression completely neutral.
Every time she looked at him, she could not help remembering the dreams she kept on having almost every day. He had become a constant part of them, his presence almost magical and unreal as the pair were always extremely close to one another in such settings. Ophelia wanted to stop having them, but it was not under her control since thinking about him was not something she could just stop.
“Amy,” Rosalina called out to her from the sofa, and Amy began to crawl towards her just as Owen started calling out to her from the other end.
Ophelia laughed at the utter confusion on Amy’s face as everyone began to call out her name from around the drawing room, and she would only be halfway towards someone when someone else would call out. Amy had not had this much interaction with people since she was born, and Ophelia was glad to see that despite being around these many people for the first time, she did not seem troubled at all.
She was basking in the attention, clearly enjoying it.
“Amy,” Rosalina’s father, the baron called out again, and she began to move towards him but stopped midway when his attention faltered and he started talking to his son.
Amy looked up as Ophelia kept her eyes on her, making sure she did not accidentally hurt herself or crash into furniture when Amy began to make her way towards Edward, whose eyeswidened as he noticed her. Although he did not turn her away or look elsewhere as Amy silently continued to crawl till she was at his feet, her hands raised slightly in the air as if urging him to pick her up.
Ophelia watched as Edward bent down, patting Amy softly on the back, a flash of love crossing his eyes momentarily.
Did I really see that? It truly happened?
She could not believe her eyes. The expression had been too brief, but she had witnessed it, and it was enough to give her hope. She could see that Edward did not hate Amy the way he pretended to, and a part of his heart just might have a soft corner for her somewhere. It only meant that if Ophelia tried hard enough, Edward just might allow his love for Amy to emerge and put aside everything he felt.
Ophelia knew it was going to be difficult, but definitely not impossible.
The drawing room was pushed open as the housekeeper entered, her eyes seeking Edward, “My Lord?”
“Yes, Mrs Connor?”
“Dinner has been served,” she informed. “All of you must make your way to the dining room.”
“We will be right there, Mrs Connor,” Rosalina replied before Edward could say anything.
Ophelia stood up from the sofa, quickly fetching Amy from the floor while she resisted all attempts at being held, quite comfortable in her position on the floor. Despite her attempts at escape, Ophelia managed to pick her up and quickly consoled her to stop the little girl from crying out loud.
“I will take Amy to the nursery,” Ophelia told Rosalina, who scrunched her eyes at the announcement, immediately beginning to shake her head.
“Absolutely not!”
“Do you want to hold her throughout dinner?” Ophelia asked, completely confused.
“No, I meant, you shall join us for dinner, and so will Amy,” Rosalina explained, “I can hold her while you eat. It is not going to be a problem at all.”
